In the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha,I go for Refuge until Enlightenment is reached.By the merit of practicing generosity and the other virtuesMay Buddhahood be realized for the benefit of all beings.

Four Boundless MindChanted by H. H. Karmapa.

May all sentient beings be happy and have the cause of happiness,May they be separated from suffering and the cause of suffering,Be inseparable from the perfect bliss which is completely free from sufferingMay they all without least exception, dwell in the universal equanimity which is unbiased by attachment for dear and near ones and aversion from distant ones.

Undeceiving sources of refuge, three jewels and three roots;Especially Avalokita, protector of the Land of Snow;Noble lady Tara; Guru Padmakara:I pray to you. Consider your pledges and promises.Grant your blessings that my aspirations be fulfilled.

Through the incorrect thoughts and actions of beings in degenerate timesAnd turmoil of the outer and inner elements,There are new human and animal diseases.We are struck by planets, naga, gyalpos, and evil bhutas;Blight, frost, hail, and poor harvests; war and fightings;Uneven rainfall, blizzards, destruction by voles and rats,Earthquakes, fire, danger from the four elements;And, in particular, invasions that threaten the dharma.

May all such things that menace this Land of SnowBe quickly pacified and eradicated.May all beings, human and non-human,Naturally generate precious bodhicittaAnd be free from malevolent thoughts and actions.May they love one another.May all of Tibet be filled with joy, well-bein…

A biography by Tsering Namgyal Khortsa. Paperback, 292 pp, Hay House India On the night of Dec. 28, 1999, the 14-year-old Ogyen Trinley Dorje made a fateful decision. Accepted and celebrated by both the Chinese government and the Tibetans as the reincarnated 17th Karmapa Lama – the only high Tibetan priest recognized by both of the warring sides, used to the presence of such dignitaries as the Chinese leader Jiang Zemin, the Karmapa, along with the Dalai Lama and the Panchen Lama, was one of Tibetan Buddhism’s triumvirate of highest holy men, the prelate of the Karma Kagyu order.

The young teenager, however, decided that he could no longer be what the Chinese government wanted him to be. Even as early as the age of 9, the Karmapa was already rebelling against Chinese pressure, refusing to read from prepared texts and almost daring the Chinese, to the consternation of his advisors. On the surface, writes Tsering Namgyal, the author who spe…

Tibetan religious head and the 17th Karmapa Ogyen Trinley Dorje on Monday appealed to his followers to remain calm and refrain from escalation of violence in the wake of the blasts in Bihar's Bodhgaya town.

"I was deeply saddened to hear of the senseless violence perpetrated Sunday at the Mahabodhi temple and its environs in Bodhgaya," the Karmapa, a frequent visitor at the Mahabodhi temple, said in a statement here.

This is the place, he said, where Buddhist pilgrims from India and the world over pay homage to Lord Buddha and his teachings.

"As yet, we do not know why or by whom this sacred site was targeted. However, I am convinced that, as Buddhists, in responding to this situation, the best homage we can pay to Lord Buddha is to uphold his teachings on love and ahimsa (nonviolence)," said the 28-year-old monk.

"I ask you, therefore, to remain calm and refrain from any further escalation of the violence. I o…

"Start a new life every morning" "We sometimes wake up fresh in the morning yet still go through the day half asleep. Our busy 21st century lives overwhelm us with a relentless stream of immediate tasks. We lose sight of how precious it is just to have a human life. This is an awareness that we need to feel in our hearts. I would like to share with you a practice that I call 'living your whole life in a single day.' You can do this by starting with this thought in the morning: 'I am starting a whole new life. It begins right now'. Initially, leave yourself a note at your bedside to remind you, and then slowly cultivate the habit of waking up with this thought. Your body is fresh from the night's rest; when you wake up with this awareness, so does your mind. Ask yourself what kind of person you want to be in the life that you will live today. Throughout the day, remind yourself that your life is happening right now. In the aft…

I was deeply saddened to hear of the senseless violence perpetrated today at the Mahabodhi temple and its environs in Bodhgaya. This is the place where Buddhist pilgrims from India and the world over pay homage to Lord Buddha and his teachings. As yet we do not know why or by whom this sacred site was targeted. However, I am convinced that, as Buddhists, in responding to this situation, the best homage we can pay to Lord Buddha is to uphold his teachings on love and ahimsa (non-violence). I ask you, therefore, to remain calm and refrain from any further escalation of the violence. I offer my prayers for the victims and their families, and call on Buddhists everywhere to truly embrace the wisdom of Lord Buddha’s teachings in all that we do. 17th Karmapa, OgyenTrinley DorjeDharamsala,7th July, 2013. http://kagyuoffice.org/message-from-his-holiness-the-17th-gyalwang-karmapa-on-the-bombing-of-the-mahabodhi-temple-and-its-environs/

Dharamshala: - A few days after his 28th birthday the 17th Gyalwang Karmapa of Tibet delighted local students and devotees from various parts of the country by giving an impromptu teaching at the request of students at Gyuto Monastery based near Dharamshala, his temporary residence. "Although the teaching was unplanned, word had quickly spread and a crowd soon filled the monastery, eager to receive the Gyalwang Karmapa's wisdom," said Kagyu Office. His Holiness the 17th Gyalwang Karmapa Ogyen Trinley Dorjee began by thanking those gathered for taking interest in his recent birthday, and for their personal celebrations and aspiration prayers. "Apart from sublime, spiritually advanced individuals, for the rest of us as ordinary people in the world we are subject to the sufferings of birth, aging, sickness and death," he said. "I personally see no need to celebrate my birthday as such, given…

30 June 2013 – Gyuto Monastery, Dharamsala A few days after his 28th birthday the Gyalwang Karmapa delighted local students and devotees by giving an impromptu teaching at the request of students at Gyuto Monastery, his temporary residence. Although the teaching was unplanned, word had quickly spread and a crowd soon filled the gompa, eager to receive the Gyalwang Karmapa’s wisdom. He began by thanking those gathered for taking interest in his recent birthday, and for their personal celebrations and aspiration prayers. “Apart from sublime, spiritually advanced individuals, for the rest of us as ordinary people in the world we are subject to the sufferings of birth, aging, sickness and death,” he said. “I personally see no need to celebrate my birthday as such, given that birth is, generally speaking, nothing but suffering. However, I still feel that I need to express a personal thank you to all of you and the many people who see my birthday as an occasion to make virtuous prayers and de…

The Gyalwang Karmapa today met with students from the Edinburgh University
Tibet Society, offering them practical and skillful guidance on dealing with the
inner challenges encountered when working for the Tibet cause.

The group of 16 students, coming from countries including the United Kingdom,
Norway and Japan, are visiting India in order to collaborate with the Students
for a Free Tibet organization in Dharamsala.

He began by thanking the students sincerely for all their support for the
Tibet cause. One of the students then explained to the Gyalwang Karmapa that
those working actively for the Tibet cause are faced with very difficult and
sometimes harrowing issues. “Often these issues give rise to very strong
emotions,” she said, “so I am wondering how we can deal with these strong
emotions in a positive way?”

In response the Gyalwang Karmapa offered several simple, practical and
profound methods for coping with strong emotions when …